Zambar is a website that provides free file conversion.  On the site you can convert various types of files (document, image, music, video, compressed format, and CAD formats).  With the free service, there are file size maximums and usage limitations.  Zambar also offers several paid services for sending larger files.

 

During my recent school visits, teachers expressed frustration with an inability to show students educational videos on YouTube.  Teachers cannot show YouTube videos because it is a site blocked by a district web filter.  There is a possible solution - turn YouTube videos into TeacherTube videos.

I read the following in ISTE’s December/January 2009-10 Learning & Leading with Technology. 

“Access YouTube (from home) and copy the URL of the educational video you want, then access a conversion tool, such as www.downloader9.com and paste the URL into the box indicated.  Follow the instructions on the screen to convert the video to an FLV file.  Go to a downloaded-hosting site, such as www.teachertube.com, and upload the FLV video file you just converted.  After a day or two, the educational video will be reviewed and approved, and then you can access it from your school for viewing.  Note that TeacherTube requires you to sign up for a free membership to use the service, but it is not typically blocked by school Web filters.”  - David Ligon (pg. 31)

I have not tried Mr. Ligon’s solution to turn YouTube videos into TeacherTube videos.  If you do, let us know how it worked.

 

Here’s the long awaited second installment of the editing software breakdown. Last week it was Windows, this week I’ll be tackling programs available for the Mac.

 

iMovie.

There was a time when iMovie was a simple but effective application for all basic video editing on your Mac. This is no longer the case. With the release of iMovie 7, Apple seriously stripped down the program in order to limit what you can actually do with your video clips. Unless you’ve spent plenty of time with iMovie 7 and are already comfortable with it, I recommend you go hereand download the older version, iMovie 6, for free.

 

Cost: Free

 

Pros:

It’s free.

Simple to use, as long as you have iMovie 6

No need to download anything, as long as you’re happy with the new version.

Cons:

       iMovie 7 makes it difficult to complete easy tasks.

 

 

Final Cut Express

I’m admittedly biased here because we use Final Cut to edit on a daily basis here at Spy Hop, but there’s a reason why; it’s a superior program where your only limit is your creativity. There are plenty of editing options, and you can edit pretty much any type of movie with ease. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but once you’ve picked it up, you’ll be frustrated with every other editing program out there.

 

Cost: Around $200

 

Pros:

    As far as I’m concerned, it’s the best editing program out there.

    As many video and audio tracks as you want. Edit multi-camera shoot easily.

Cons:

     Similar to Premiere, the cost of the program can add up when you’ve got it      on several computers. Explore the multi user license option.

As a continuation from last week’s blog about video cameras, I wanted to post some thoughts about different editing software available for your computer. This week, I’ll be mentioning a few programs I recommend for your PC. Next week I’ll address options for Mac users.

 

Windows Movie Maker.

After using Windows Movie Maker fairly extensively this year, I’ve actually been somewhat impressed. For a free program that comes installed on your computer, it’s not too bad. For simple editing, Windows Movie Maker is great, but if you’re looking to do some more complicated tricks, expect to get frustrated.

Cost: Free

 

Pros: 

-          Cost.

-          Easy to use.

-          Come preinstalled on your PC.

 

Cons:

-          Not many editing options.

-         Only one additional audio track is allowed, so if you want to add sound effects  and music simultaneously, you’re out of luck.

 

 

Adobe Premiere Elements

Although it’s essentially a bare bones version of Premiere Pro, Adobe Premiere Elements still gives you plenty of options to edit projects in more advanced ways. With the addition of multiple video and audio tracks, you’ll be able to lay as many clips on top of each other as you’d like. The bottom line is if you’re looking to create some more complicated projects (especially events that were shot with more than one camera) Premiere is the way to go.

Cost: $140

 

Pros:

-          Edit complex projects much easier than Windows Movie Maker.

-          More transition and title options.

 

Cons:

-          Although $140 isn’t a lot of money for software, you’ll still need to buy copies for multiple computers.

-          Premiere will take a bit more power to run. You’ll need to make sure your computer can handle the system requirements.

-          Premiere is easy to use once you’ve played with it for a bit, but it’s not as intuitive as Windows Movie Maker.